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Silver Back In The Limelight; Silver Coins The Most Popular Investment Choice For Small-Ticket Investors In a nation with a rich history of gold idol worship silver is silently finding its own space in people’s hearts. As gold nears historic highs in India silver coins are emerging as the affordable stylish and sensible option for small-ticket investors and festive gift gifting. Retail jewellers and bullion traders have a visible demand jump from across classes and categories from young investors to small businesses and families for whom gold bars or ornaments are a too big-ticket purchase in the everyday investment routine. Silver coin prices: Silver demand shines from retail sector Jewellery chains and bullion traders across India have told Moneycontrol that the sales of silver coins especially 10g to 100g coins are doing well. It is not a one-off seasonal effect either. Retail investors are adding silver as an affordable and easy-to-buy asset in their portfolios. Retail buyers are buying silver coins gold jewellery and ornaments are on the expensive side says a bullion dealer in Surat. Traders also add that silver has the advantage of dual identity as both a pure investment metal and an industrial one increasing its long-term demand. Below is a simplified table reflecting current price trends of silver coins in different weight categories: Weight (grams) Average Retail Price (₹) Trend Compared to Last Month 10g ₹1000 – ₹1200 ↑ 5% 20g ₹2000 – ₹2300 ↑ 6% 50g ₹4800 – ₹5200 ↑ 7% 100g ₹9800 – ₹10500 ↑ 8% 1kg ₹98000 – ₹105000 ↑ 10% Prices could vary slightly based on the purity level of coins making charges and the city. What do silver prices look like in different cities? City 10g Price (₹) 100g Price (₹) 1kg Price (₹) Chennai ₹2059 ₹20590 ₹205900 Mumbai ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Delhi ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Kolkata ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Bangalore ₹1939 ₹19390 ₹193900 Hyderabad ₹2059 ₹20590 ₹205900 Kerala ₹2059 ₹20590 ₹205900 Pune ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Vadodara ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Ahmedabad ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Jaipur ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Lucknow ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Coimbatore ₹2059 ₹20590 ₹205900 Madurai ₹2059 ₹20590 ₹205900 Vijayawada ₹2059 ₹20590 ₹205900 Patna ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Nagpur ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Chandigarh ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Surat ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Bhubaneswar ₹2059 ₹20590 ₹205900 Mangalore ₹1939 ₹19390 ₹193900 Visakhapatnam ₹2059 ₹20590 ₹205900 Nashik ₹1902 ₹19020 ₹190200 Mysore ₹1939 ₹19390 ₹193900 Salem ₹2059 ₹20590 ₹205900 Rajkot ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Trichy ₹2059 ₹20590 ₹205900 Ayodhya ₹1889 ₹18890 ₹188900 Cuttack ₹2059 ₹20590 ₹205900 Why are silver coins popular? The factors driving the silver coins trend right now say retailers and bullion traders are: Affordable option: Silver prices make it a much more accessible option than gold to start or continue buying an investment metal. Most jewellers told Moneycontrol that silver coins are the only item many people pick after buying gold on festivals like Diwali and Dhanteras. Gift gifting option: Silver coins in addition to being a small investment are considered very auspicious gifts like gold coins or ornaments on festivals and weddings. High Liquidity: Silver is easier to buy and sell than gold so the coins work for easy-to-access investments if the need arises. Industrial demand increase: Silver industrial usage in many sectors is on the rise in solar panels batteries electronics and even in food industry with photovoltaics growing the fastest. It by extension increases the investment demand. Safe haven option: Inflationary times have more people wanting to use silver as a hedge to preserve savings. Industry takes the pulse Retail jewellers and bullion chains have reported a pick-up in demand for silver coins. At the time of purchase customers are mostly in the age bracket of 25-40 years. “This group wants to make an emotional connect to their savings and invest in small ticket sizes instead of just liquid funds or high-yield fixed deposits” a jeweller from Ayodhya the Ram Mandir Kashi Dham Tourism said. Ajay Kedia senior bullion analyst at Mumbai-based Kedia Swiss Brokers told Moneycontrol that silver coins are no longer just about making a festive gifting. “Investors are using them as the initial step in their portfolio journey without needing to lock up large sums of money. We’re now seeing silver coins becoming the smart choice over traditional gold jewellery purchases.” Festive season demand: What’s the emotional connect? In India where metal idol worship has traditionally seen a large preference for gold the emotional connect to silver has added appeal especially during festive seasons. Buying coins or jewellery with silver of Goddess Lakshmi or Lord Ganesha’s idol or just new-age universal good-luck symbols on festivals is a popular tradition. Festivals like Dhanteras Akshaya Tritiya and Diwali still see the largest footfalls in jeweller stores. Hence while it can be an investment it’s an equal part of tradition sentiment and family celebrations. Expect silver coins to remain the hot retail pick in the festival season as against pure savings like liquid funds or FDs. What do the retailers have to say? “It is not just small-ticket investors or people who can’t afford gold. There is high demand from women to gift their family members or in-laws on auspicious days” Manoj Jain director at PND Jewellers in Jaipur told Moneycontrol. It is also heartening to see that youngsters are also buying silver” an executive at Ram Mandir Kashi Dham Tourism and Padmini Jewellery in Ayodhya told Moneycontrol. “Silver coins are a cost-effective option for retail investors who are already allocating part of their portfolio to the debt mutual fund sector and a comfortable option for small to middle-level salaried employees.” The bottomline Silver has found a new reason to shine. As a token of good-luck and auspiciousness; as a smaller ticket but easy-to-access financial hedge investment; as a way to channel small savings for the short- or long-term. Silver coins are the current hot retail pick in a market full of investment options. Silver coins are as one retailer put it ‘exciting for the same reason it is boring.’ That is a steady ‘unemotional’ investment that most people know the importance of and that people buy during specific events. Expect silver coin buying to become a habit rather than a one-off splurge for a lot more retail investors with gold prices ruling high and inflation expected to remain a part of spending and investment decision making in the near-term.